Johnson appeared to make a terrible decision with Spieth’s tee shot, now fans want to know when Tiger Woods will show up to take over as Ryder Cup captain.
American Ryder Cup Captain Zach Johnson appeared to make a risky decision to tell Jordan Spieth to club down from driver to 3-wood on the par-4 16th. That proved to be the most costly mistake of the day and has fans questioning Johnson's choices.
The American duo of Spieth and Justin Thomas were 3-down with three to play. They needed a great tee shot. Every player all tournament had gone driver, with almost no one going long on the drivable par-4.
Despite facing a 10 mph wind, Spieth put the big dog away. His tee shot then came up woefully short, finding the water.
☠️ #LOOK: Zach Johnson tells Spieth to switch clubs… leading to a water ball ☠️ #RyderCup
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) September 30, 2023
pic.twitter.com/nZd83k1okM
Justin Rose made an incredible putt to give Team Europe another point as he and Robert MacIntyre won 3 & 2 to give Spieth and Thomas their second loss of the day.
From the moment he made that decision, it had the broadcast team baffled. When the ball went into the water, fans erupted on social media, giving the Ryder Cup captain hell.
Many of which are begging for Tiger Woods to fly to Rome and take over as captain.
Zach Johnson is a clown. This is embarrassing. It has to be Fred Couples or Tiger Woods as captain at Bethpage otherwise American golf is lost! #RyderCup
— Manuel Gonzales (@mgonzal30) September 30, 2023
I woke up hoping the video of Tiger landing in Rome meant we’d see Sunday Singles Tiger but at this point, I hope he’s there to take over for Zach Johnson, he’s trolling at the Ryder Cup. Need a 2 on short Par 4 and he tells Spieth to put the Driver away and take 3W??
— Special K #TouchGrass (@SpecialK_NBD) September 30, 2023
coach prime wouldn’t have talked spieth out of hitting driver! https://t.co/JjkIACuK6C
— Jordan Perez (@jrdnprz) September 30, 2023
Summary of Zach Johnson’s captaincy so far: pic.twitter.com/rY5e1sc106
— Rick Golfs (@Top100Rick) September 29, 2023
“Hit 3-wood for the content” pic.twitter.com/ztgwJqj3Jk
— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) September 30, 2023
Zach Johnson: “Go with 3-wood, Jordan.”
— Jeff Eisenband (@JeffEisenband) September 30, 2023
Michael Greller: pic.twitter.com/3yl7e96Gjg
Zach Johnson bet on Europe to win and you won't convince me otherwise.
— Ryan Whitney (@ryanwhitney6) September 30, 2023
Fans have questioned Johnson's decisions since the Americans got swept Friday morning 4-0 in foursomes. Saturday's sessions have fared a touch better for Team USA — thanks to Max Homa and Brian Harman. They went 2-0-0 on Saturday.
However, there is still so much surrounding Team USA, from the rumors about Patrick Cantlay the team sickness to sitting Rickie Fowler all day, very little is going right for the Americans.
This decision to club down might be Johnson's worst decision this week. It cost his team to potentially come back and get another point. The Americans will have slim to no chance of winning the Ryder Cup with Sunday Singles.
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
